Chapter 19

Denial

Hermione was still trying to process what had conspired between she and Draco so while she was able to process what was in front of her, her mind had not registered the heavy footfalls and shouting coming from behind her. Because of momentary mental delay, when Draco suddenly dropped her hand she continued walking forward before realizing he was no longer by her side.

She turned to see Draco and Ron staring each other down, wands at the ready. The mass of students around them was dead silent. Harry stood behind Ron, apparently having given up on trying to restrain him. Just as Hermione was about to intervene, Draco cautiously lowered his wand and took a step back.

"Leave us alone, Weasley," Draco warned.

Said wizard also lowered his wand, turning towards Harry. "Come on, Harry, let's go." Ron turned his head back toward the direction of the couple. "She'll realize what's she's doing eventually. Denial can only go on for so long."

As the two Gryffindors walked away, the crowd that had assembled took it as a cue to move along.

Draco wished her a happy Valentine's Day once more before bidding her goodbye to go to his own table for breakfast. The witch was put off at being abandoned at that moment, but he had promised her a meeting at dinner. Though it wasn't exactly what she wanted, knowing when she would get answers helped quell her anxiousness if only a bit.

Draco decided that what he had done was probably unfair, but he hoped that he would be able to make up for it during dinner. He had insisted Hermione go eat dinner prior to coming to the Room of Requirement, but he knew that was not likely to happen so he arranged for an elf from the kitchen to prepare several snacks for them. He had tried sitting and waiting for Hermione, but found that his nervousness seemed to settle in his abdomen when he did that. Currently, he was pacing between their chairs trying to convince himself everything would work out in his favor. He heard her enter the room and reminded himself that he was Draco Malfoy, composed of charm and grace, before taking a seat and mentally preparing himself for the conversation he had been thinking about for years.

As Hermione turned the corner, he noticed that she had taken the time to change out of her uniform. She was now wearing a deep red sweater with a black skirt and tights. Draco was going to compliment her, but decided he would see how their conversation went before saying something that might make her uncomfortable if things did not pan out his way.

"Wow, this is lovely," she said with a somewhat forced smile.

"I thought you might skip dinner and come straight here, so having food prepared seemed like a good idea." She hummed in agreement before taking a seat. After a moment he added, "I know how impatient you can be when you want information."

She heaved a heavy sigh. "So you're waiting on me then?"

He nodded. "I'm not really sure what you're wanting to know, so yes. I'm waiting on you."

The brunette crossed her legs and leaned forward in her seat. "I have been trying to figure out all day how exactly I wanted to start this conversation, but I couldn't really decide on the best way to go about it." She paused and inhaled deeply. Draco's could feel his nervousness start to build. "Why did you bring me a rose?"

"Because it's St. Valentine's Day, we're a fake couple, and that's what fake boyfriends do," he said without missing a beat.

"All right, that makes sense..." He watched her struggle internally and wondered what she was thinking. "Why did you kiss me?"

She didn't sound upset. Her expression only showed a thirst for knowledge that he had seen so many times before. He found it strangely comforting. "Partly because I wanted to upset your idiot friends who had been attacking you."

"And the other part?" she asked almost immediately.

"I wanted to."

"You wanted to?" she echoed, looking at him with a disbelieving expression.

He laid back against his chair in an attempt to feign composure. "I wanted to kiss you," he clarified.

She paused for a moment, processing this new information. "Why?"

"Why does anyone want to kiss anyone, Hermione?"

She stayed silent.

He knew that he should be doing something - say something - but everything he had planned to say had disappeared from his mind and he wasn't actually sure what he should be doing anymore. "Did you want to kiss me?" he asked to buy himself time.

Strangely, watching the witch open and close her mouth unable to form words gave him a sense of comfort. He wasn't sure what he was expecting from that question, but her response was amusing. Endearing. She leaned back in her seat.

He lifted himself off of his chair and approached her slowly. "I've wanted to kiss you for a long time."

"How long?" she asked nervously.

As opposed to towering over her, he decided to sit on the table facing her. "I'm not sure you would believe me if I told you..."

She shifted in her seat, moving slightly closer but clearly well aware of the space between them. "Try me," she said with conviction.

Her conviction made Draco feel more determined. He inhaled deeply and started, "Since we were eleven years old." Her expression did not change, so he continued. "I'm not sure if you remember, but in Diagon Alley before our second year my father and I ran into you at the book shop. He told you that I had told him all about you - that was no exaggeration. I spent so much time thinking about you over the summer holiday. I realized you were special. And that I should not think so. After that, I tried to convince myself that you're not special at all - that you were inferior. I'm not sure that I ever really believed it."

He watched her release a breath she had apparently been holding on to. "So you've... had a crush on me since we were children?"

"Malfoys don't have crushes," he said with an eyeroll, hoping he was projecting enough confidence. "I've... had feelings for you since we were children." She nodded her head slowly, and he realized then that the brunette had been avoiding his gaze. "You didn't answer my question - did you want to kiss me?"

She looked up at him, finally, with an expression he couldn't read.

Hermione looked at the wizard in front of her - Draco Malfoy. Draco Malfoy was telling her that he harbored romantic feelings for her for years. Despite the fact that he tormented her for years. Draco Malfoy who had been a good friend to her for months.

She recalled their interactions from before their "coexistence" began, their interactions after, and how there had been... moments. Moments of things she had never been certain of. Now she knew what he felt. Somehow that made things more clear for her.

She climbed slowly out of her chair, wondering if her subconscious was going to stop her or change her mind. Moving closer, she placed one hand on his cheek to guide his gaze to hers. Looking into his grey eyes, she knew there was no stopping or changing anything. She leaned down and pressed her lips to his lightly as if testing the waters. Hermione pulled away to look at Draco. He mimicked her action, putting a hand against her cheek to guide her to him, this time both immersing themselves in the kiss. Pulling away, Hermione found that she had found a seat on his lap and suspected she looked just as flushed as he did.

"Happy Valentine's Day?" she asked with a weak smile.

"I'm a bit offended you didn't get me any flowers, but I suppose it will do," he said with a smirk.

Neither seemed willing to move, so Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck trying to get comfortable. "Nothing else to say?"

"Just trying to remember everything about this," he admitted quietly.

"I do have one more question - actually I have many, but just one more for this moment. Why tell me now?"

Draco shrugged. "Denial can only last so long."